Why the Phillies Are Getting Rid of Red Jerseys

There was some big news reported about the Philadelphia Phillies this offseason that wasn't pertaining to Aaron Nola. While it didn't have anything to do with player additions, it directly impacts what will be on the field.

Tim Kelly of Phillies Nation reported that the Phillies will not be wearing their red jerseys during the 2024 season.

These jerseys have been primarily used during Spring Training, but were put into the rotation starting in 2016. It was the first time that Philadelphia had worn them in a regular season game since 1976. The reds got much more support from players prior to 2021 and were used as an option on the road alongside their grays.

Now, the red jerseys will be ditched altogether.

"Nike has a “4+1” rule, meaning they will produce four jerseys per team, and five if the fifth is a City Connect uniform. The Phillies already had five — pinstripes, cream, powder blue, gray and red — meaning one needed to be ditched with the impending arrival of the “+1” in the form of the City Connects," Kelly reports.

The Phillies will look much different in Spring Training as well according to Kelly as the reds will not be produced solely for these games.

So, without these jerseys, what will be their road options besides gray?

"The powder blue throwbacks have been made into a home uniform in this era, but were the primary road uniforms for the Phillies from 1972-1988. In theory, they could be mixed in on the road again, but that’s perhaps not as easy logistically as it sounds. When the Phillies wore the red alternate tops on the road, they just had to bring an extra set of jerseys, not pants, hats and cleats. The powder blue uniforms have a different hat, pants and colorway from the grays, so the Phillies would need to bring multiple uniform sets on every trip for powder blue to be part of the road rotation," Kelly writes.

With the City Connects going to be worn at home, this situation has gotten a lot more complicated when factoring in what else will be worn on the road.

During the 2024 season, Philadelphia might just be sporting the gray jerseys away from home after ditching the reds that were in their rotation for the past three seasons.